Western Massachusetts destinations try attracting local tourists

New words such as “staycation” seem to be popping up almost regularly in today’s vocabulary – some even making it into the dictionary.

Merriam-Webster added the term to its dictionary in 2009, defining the blend of “stay” and “vacation” as “a vacation spent at home or nearby.”

And, since its introduction – the result of the global economic slowdown, the word has had major implications for the tourism industry and its marketing efforts, including Western Massachusetts, which can claim some of the state’s top destinations for tourists.

“In the summer of 2008 when the cost of gasoline rose to nearly $4 a gallon we definitely believed in the ‘staycation’ concept,” says Mary Kay Wydra, president of the Greater Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We immediately did something we never do, and that was to market locally. We understood the value of doing that at the time, with the economy tanking and people choosing not to travel as far.”

Now, Wydra adds, they prefer the word “getaway,” which has more meaning in the business of tourism.

“We’re about heads and beds here, and the bureau is funded in part on the state level through the room tax,” she explained. “So, ideally, what we are trying to do is to focus on getting people to spend a night or more in a hotel. We recognize that the economy isn’t back to what it was several years ago, but there seems to be a bit more consumer confidence, and while people might not be ready to spend one or two weeks away, they might spend three or four nights in a hotel. And, people spend more when they stay longer.”

Wydra sings the praises of places like the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Springfield Museums for the work they do to create events that bring tourists to the region.

“We will be meeting with some larger attractions shortly to talk about how we can work together on themed events that will move visitors around the (Pioneer) Valley from one destination to another,” she added.

Attendance in 2010 was up an estimated 22 percent over the previous year at the Springfield Museums where they expect final figures in the 300,000 range.

Old Sturbridge Village saw more than a 12 percent increase, with some 270,178 visitors prior to the end of its reporting year on Jan. 31.

Figures are also up by 3 percent at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, where they are now in the 200,000 to 210,000 range for visitors, which officials say is in the mid-range for other halls of fame across the country.

And, while Yankee Candle averages 1 million to 1.5 million visitors each year, officials said the Deerfield flagship store recorded sales in the $15 million to $20 million range, which they describe simply as “up nicely this year.”

“Our visitation at the basketball hall of fame is primarily from a 2.5- to 3-hours driving radius, although we do have visitors from all 50 states annually and many from foreign countries, with China and Japan leading the way,” said John Doleva, president and chief executive officer.

When the “stay-cation” concept hit, and with an assumption a larger pool of potential visitors in a three-hour drive range, the hall of fame stepped up advertising targeting the audience in the New England marketplace, according to Doleva. The strategy continued in 2010 and resulted in a slight uptick over 2009.

“I attribute the growth to moving enshrinement from the September timeframe to the middle of August this past summer, a time when kids are out of school and parents can take a few days off and plan to be part of the festivities,” he said. “We also attempted to bring in as many hall-of-famers and basketball celebrities as we could over the busy summertime period to drive repeat admissions or pull first-time visitors that needed a reason to get over the decisional hump to make that first trek to the hall.”

“We find people are choosing Old Sturbridge Village not only because it’s nearby and an easy trip, but also because we’re a good value,” says Ann Lindblad, vice president of marketing and communications at the living-history museum.

Old Sturbridge focuses its marketing strategy primarily on people who live within two hours travel time, according to Lindblad. “We try to focus on the richness of the interactive, hands-on experience visitors have once they get here,” said Lindblad.

She attributes the village’s third year of increased attendance to a number of things, including their historians in costume, who interact with the public every day, improved program offerings that change throughout the year, improved marketing and publicity and “wonderful word-of-mouth” that now includes social media.

“We have more than 7,500 OSV Facebook fans,” said Lindblad.

At the Springfield Museums, President Holly Smith-Bove also thinks the word “stay-cation” is getting a bit stale, but says the museums are finding that people from the area are re-discovering the museums and making return visits.

“However, so are people from much farther away. On Indian Motocycle Day last July, we counted motorcycles in our parking lot from 14 different states as far away as Utah and Missouri,” she said.

Like other destinations, the museums have increased their social marketing efforts and are doing more advertising, including participation in several cooperative campaigns through the visitors’ bureau.

Yankee Candle uses the term “retail-tainment” to describe its success with its flagship store in Deerfield, says Harlan Kent, chief executive officer.

They work to offer two to three special events each month to keep “the experience fresh and our guests entertained.” “Our store is really a ‘retailtainment’ destination with food, fun for the kids, and, of course, lots of great products,” Kent said.

A school vacation celebration last February, which included shows and entertainment, attracted 55,000 visitors to Yankee Candle, according to Kent. A Longaberger basket festival in June saw 20,000 visitors, and when Santa arrived in November, the special event drew 35,000 visitors, he added.

Already this year, concerns about increases in gasoline prices are creeping into the picture, says Doleva.

“Vacationers have to be concerned with the economic malaise,” he said. “And, forecasting where we will be in the summer of 2011 is anything but certain. Just as in 2010, those who feel stable will travel, and those who have lost a job or are just making ends meet will be hard pressed to vacation for a week or even a few days.”

He said he sees 2011 shaping up to be a “challenging year,” but added, “on the plus side we represent the world’s most popular game.”

The hall of fame will repeat its enshrinement on an August schedule “with a potentially very popular elected class,” Doleva said. “We will continue to aggressively promote ourselves in targeted ways to reach the family and youth customer which represents our core market,” he added.

At Old Sturbridge, new events will be added, and traditional ones that have drawn large numbers of visitors will be repeated, Lindblad said.

The Springfield Museums has already opened a new exhibit “Reptiles: The Beautiful and the Deadly,” and in the spring will host an art exhibition of paintings of America’s national parks followed in the summer by “Be the Dinosaurs,” an interactive computer simulation.